Is your weight obscuring your vision of what the scale really says?

Did you know that your weight skews your beliefs about what you actually weigh? Overweight and obese women and children tend to underestimate their true body weight, and mothers with overweight children believe their children's weight to be normal. So, in a sense their weight obscures their vision of what the scale really says or what the mirror shows.

This information, which came to light during a Columbia University study, was presented at the American Heart Association's Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism/Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention 2011 Scientific Sessions, held from March 22 to 25 in Atlanta. Nicole E. Dumas, M.D., of the Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues investigated perception of body size among 222 women and pre-adolescent children at an urban clinic servicing a predominantly minority population. Participants completed a survey about cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, socio-demographics, and their perceived body size. They used silhouette images corresponding to a specific body mass index (BMI). The researchers measured weight, height, and BMI.

Overweight and obese women and children commonly underestimated their body weight, with 81.8 percent of obese women underestimating their true weight compared to 42.5 percent of overweight and 13.2 percent of normal weight women. Like their mothers, 85.7 percent of overweight or obese children underestimated their own weight. Of mothers with overweight or obese children, 47.5 percent thought their child's weight was normal. Children tended to choose larger images than their mothers did to describe an "ideal" or "healthiest" woman. Overall, 41.4 percent of children thought their mothers needed to lose weight.

"These troubling findings indicate obese images are acceptable norms in families, thereby increasing risk for CVD. Strategies to overcome the obesity epidemic will need to address weight misperception among families," the researches reported.

If you feel you might have skewed beliefs about your own weight or about acceptable or healthy weight, you can:

1. Go see a doctor and ask for their perspective on your weight.
2. Research healthy weight ranges for your height and age.
3. Find photos of healthy people who are about your age and height.
4. Talk to a therapist or counselor.
5. Discuss your concerns with friends or associates who will tell you the truth about whether or not they think you are overweight (or underweight).

Although this information has just come to light and deals primarily with overweight women, many men and women suffer from skewed beliefs about their weight. For example, those who suffer from anorexia or bulimia often look in the mirror and see themselves as fat when instead they are overly thin. Therefore, this data just confirms that we must all consider that what we see in the mirror is not necessarily what really exists when it comes to our bodies. A reality check, such as a trip to the doctor for a weigh in and consult about what weight constitutes a healthy one, may be a good thing.